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Cabrera nets AL Player of Week honors

Cabrera nets AL Player of Week honors

4/8/12: Miguel Cabrera ties the game with a three-run shot in the bottom of the ninth, and Alex Avila walks off for the Tigers in the 11th

By Joey Nowak
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MLB.com |

After leading the league with three home runs and eight RBIs, Tigers third baseman Miguel Cabrera was named the American League's Player of the Week for the first week of the season.

Cabrera hit .455 (5-for-11) to help the Tigers sweep the Red Sox in the season-opening series in Detroit. It is the ninth time Cabrera has been honored with the award, the first since 2010 and the fifth time since he arrived in Detroit in 2008.

Cabrera was tied for the Major League lead in total bases (14), tied for second in runs scored (five) and had the third-best slugging percentage (1.273).

The reigning AL batting champ recorded the Tigers' first homer of the season in the first inning of a 10-0 rout Saturday, before connecting on another long ball in the fifth. It was his first multihomer game since June 29, 2011, against the Mets.

Cabrera proceeded to go 3-for-5 with five RBIs in the series finale Sunday to spark the game-winning rally in extra innings.

The Tigers are 3-0 for the first time since 2006, the last time they advanced to the World Series.

Fellow Tigers Prince Fielder (.417 batting average, two homers, three RBIs, 1,000th hit of his career) and Alex Avila (.417, two homers, five RBIs) were also considered for the weekly award. The Dodgers' Matt Kemp was the National League's recipient.

Joey Nowak is a reporter for MLB.com. Follow him on Twitter at @joeynowak.‬ This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.